If you ever shopped for hardwood or laminate flooring, you’ve probably run across Lumber Liquidators. Known for bargain pricing and those catchy commercials, the company spent decades as a go-to option for folks tackling home improvement projects. But things have changed a lot for this flooring giant.
These days, the brand goes by LL Flooring. And now, after years of struggle, it’s shutting down for good. Let’s go through what happened, why this happened, and what it means for customers and workers.
Backstory: From Discount Darling to Troubled Giant
Lumber Liquidators opened its first store back in 1994, promising super low prices on everything from hardwood to bamboo. The idea was simple—cut out the middleman and sell flooring direct to homeowners, often undercutting the big-box stores.
For a while, things boomed. The brand became known coast to coast, opening nearly 400 locations at its peak. In 2020, it tried to shed old baggage and rebranded itself as “LL Flooring.” The company hoped the new face would help it move forward, but the problems ran deeper than just a logo.
Major Setback: The “60 Minutes” Formaldehyde Scandal
The beginning of big trouble for Lumber Liquidators came in 2015. CBS’s “60 Minutes” aired an investigation that revealed some of the company’s Chinese-made laminate flooring contained unsafe levels of formaldehyde—a chemical linked to health risks.
The report sparked panic for customers, drew attention from government agencies, and sent shockwaves through the flooring industry. If you knew anyone who’d just redone their floors, you probably heard about it. Sales took a nosedive. Lawsuits started piling up.
The company tried to reassure customers, offered product tests, and dropped the bad inventory. But trust isn’t something you get back overnight. Since that huge scandal, LL Flooring never really recovered its old reputation or its comfortable position in the market.
Fines, Lawsuits, and Money Troubles
There’s more to the story than just bad press. In 2019, after years of investigations, the company ended up paying $33 million in fines. The government accused Lumber Liquidators of misleading investors about the chemical levels in some of their flooring. That put even more pressure on the bottom line and created even more hesitancy for customers.
At the same time, competitors nibbled away at market share. Big retailers—think Home Depot and Lowe’s—offered similar products, often at similar prices, but without the baggage. E-commerce flooring sellers grew faster than LL Flooring could keep up. Private-label brands and DIY trends kept evolving.
By the early 2020s, LL Flooring’s financial results went from mediocre to worrying. Consumer habits shifted, home improvement cooled off, and interest rates climbed, making big renovations less common. Store traffic dropped, revenue dipped, and profits basically evaporated.
Chapter 11 Bankruptcy: Hoping for a Lifeline
In August 2024, LL Flooring filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. For those unfamiliar, Chapter 11 isn’t an instant death sentence. The idea is to pause debt payments, work out a deal with creditors, and ideally find a way to survive—maybe by selling off assets or even the whole business.
At first, LL Flooring’s leaders made it clear: the company hoped to find a buyer. There were talks with possible investors and other flooring businesses. They also announced plans to close 94 underperforming stores to cut costs and look more attractive to potential buyers.
Still, with about 200 locations remaining and no rescue offers panning out, the outlook was grim by late summer 2024.
Going Out of Business: Shutting Down All Stores
Things moved quickly in September 2024. LL Flooring announced it would wind down operations entirely after failing to find a buyer during bankruptcy. That means it’s not just closing stores here and there—it’s shutting down every location, ending all operations, and selling off the remaining inventory.
The process is expected to finish in about 12 weeks. All told, roughly 200 stores will close during this period. If you drive by a location in your town, you’ll probably see big “Store Closing” banners and liquidation sales. These sales are a chance to score deals, but selections will shrink as items sell out.
Closing sales have already started at many locations and will stick around until stores run out of inventory or the official closing date hits.
What’s Happening With Orders and Installations?
If you’re a customer, you might be wondering what happens to existing orders. That’s a fair question.
Right now, stores and the company’s website are still taking orders, but only while inventory lasts and only until stores officially close. They’ve made it clear: all existing installation orders will be finished within the next 30 days. If you already placed an order for floor installation, crews will finish the job.
But there’s a firm deadline here. LL Flooring will not accept new installation orders after September 6, 2024. After that, the only thing available will be products—not labor. Watch for restrictions and check with your local store if you have a pending delivery or pickup, because timelines are tight.
For returns or product issues, the usual customer service channels are still open for now. As stores close, though, options will probably become limited.
What About Employees?
The most immediate impact is hitting the company’s workforce. About 2,000 employees are losing their jobs as LL Flooring closes the doors. That includes workers at all levels—store staff, warehouse crews, as well as office roles.
The company says it’s offering transition support for employees. That usually involves severance pay, help with filing for unemployment, or sometimes job placement resources. But for most workers, this shift comes with very little notice and big changes to their day-to-day life. If you know someone who worked for LL Flooring, you may have already heard about the uncertainty they’re facing.
What Happens Next?
After the wind down, it’s likely that a bankruptcy court will oversee selling off the company’s remaining inventory and assets. Secured lenders and creditors will hope to recover some of their money, but regular customers probably won’t see much more beyond “liquidation price” deals.
New players might gobble up some of LL Flooring’s old store locations or take over their distribution infrastructure. It’s possible you’ll see a few of those old stores rebranded by other flooring chains or even big-box stores in the future.
If you’re interested in the impact on retail bankruptcies and store closures this year, sites like Serabusiness track those trends and provide broader context on why some household names disappear while others adapt.
How Did It Come to This?
It’s not just one bad year that brought about the end of LL Flooring. You’ve got a company hit hard by one of the biggest reputation scandals in its industry, unable to fully recover trust with shoppers and investors. Pair that with industry changes, supply chain challenges, a rocky economy, and increased competition, and things start to look bleak.
The failed rebrand didn’t help much either. Changing the name from Lumber Liquidators to LL Flooring was an attempt to wipe the slate clean, but shoppers remembered the headlines. The negative buzz never fully faded.
Repeated attempts to revive sales just couldn’t reverse years of falling revenue. Discounts, closing underperforming stores, and hoping for new investment didn’t stop the slide. When the bankruptcy plan failed to attract a buyer, the end was almost inevitable.
What Does This Mean for the Flooring Industry?
LL Flooring’s closure is a big shift in the flooring world, but it’s not the end for the category. People will still remodel kitchens, finish basements, and upgrade living rooms. The demand for affordable wood and laminate flooring isn’t going away; it’s just that someone else will fill the gap.
The big winners here are probably the massive hardware chains and a handful of online-only retailers. Smaller chains could also grab new customers. And for everyday folks, the “fire sale” closing events will offer short-term deals, but not a lot of long-term impact.
It’s a reminder that one big scandal or a series of missteps can bring down even the most established brands.
The Takeaway: An End for LL Flooring
So, is Lumber Liquidators going out of business? The simple answer is yes—LL Flooring is closing its doors at every remaining store, leaving behind decades of home improvement history.
Stores will stay open for a few more weeks, but the retail chapter of this discount flooring brand is closing fast. For customers, it’s one last chance to buy from a brand that once dominated the category. For employees, it’s a tougher road, but hopefully they’ll land new opportunities soon.
Like a lot of big retail stories, the end often feels quieter than you expect. In a year, most neighborhoods will have filled those empty locations with new stores, and another company will be running the show. For those who shopped at LL Flooring or lost their job there, though, it marks a pretty significant change.